Chapter 20
"It's been two weeks," Birdie stood in front of her father's home office and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Why, thank you time-master," Heyder looked up. "I would have never known without your gracious generosity and willingness to share your knowledge."
"Why is he not waking up yet?" Birdie narrowed her eyes.
"Who are we talking about?"
"My brother," Birdie stepped into the room. "Your first born!"
"It's....complicated," Heyder put down the dagger he had been inspecting.
"Mom said he was just tired," Birdie walked up to her dad and placed her hands on the table in front of him.
"Don't touch the iron," Heyder said, pushing her hand back with the dagger.
"Nora is healing," Birdie clicked her tongue. "Why isn't Hayden?"
"Do I look like I know everything?" Heyder raised a brow.
"You're supposed to!" Birdie snapped, her eyes clouding over with emotions she couldn't handle. "You're supposed to make everything better!"
Heyder let go of a deep sigh and put the dagger down. He walked around the table and held his arm out as Birdie dived in.
"I'm sorry," he said, kissing the top of her head. "Baba is trying. I'll make everything better, I promise."
"He's never been like this before," Birdie said in a quiet little voice. "I'm really worried about him."
"You've been keeping him company?"
Birdie nodded, "I hate seeing him like this."
"He's healing," Heyder said. "Slowly. Very slowly."
"Why is that?"
"We're not sure," Heyder tucked Birdie's head under his chin. "He's fine physically. Everything is healed....but he won't wake up."
"Can a half jinn and fey go into a coma?"
"This isn't a coma," Heyder said. "But it's something..."
Birdie wrapped her arms around her father and sighed. She couldn't stop the one tear that slowly fell down her face as she thought about her last conversation with her brother.
"Maybe we should bring Nora here," the girl suggested.
"Why?" Heyder pulled back and looked at his daughter.
"I don't know," Birdie shrugged. "Hayden likes her right...maybe hearing her voice or having her near might help?"
"You're brother is handsome but he's not sleeping beauty," Heyder laughed.
"It's worth a shot."
"She's not healed enough to move yet," Heyder shook his head. "She's barely able to stay conscious for more than 30 seconds at a time."
"Maybe when she's better?"
"I'm praying Hayden will beat her to the finish line," Heyder sighed.
_______________________
Clare knocked on the closed door twice before turning the knob and entering the small neat office.
"Dr. Ming?" She said. "You wanted to speak to me?"
"Oh, Clare!" The doctor jumped up. "You didn't have to come all the way down here. You could have just called me up."
"I needed the walk," Clare smiled. "My husband is driving me insane upstairs. He's cleaning."
